 |
| (© Malcolm Sinclair) |
My wife and I made it to the Gala through wind and rain, wondering if audience numbers might have dwindled due to storm “Babet.” Nothing of the sort! It was sold out well in advance and nobody was going to miss such a duo at this anniversary gig. Toni Kofi explained the song choices as being themed under the heading, “Piano Masters” and included Paul Edis (with two originals today) in this list – praise indeed!
 |
| (© Malcolm Sinclair) |
Tadd Dameron was the first “master” with On a Misty Night and well-received solos by both musicians set the tone for what was to follow. What followed immediately was the first of the Edis originals, Breathing Waltz which Tony Kofi described as “a favourite of mine.” Owners of the When Winter Turns to Spring album by Edis and Jo Harrop would recognise the melody from track 8, Breathing. Here it was given a jazz-waltz treatment, a complex sax solo and (maybe) a piano quote from My Favorite Things (Paul’s thank-you for Tony's compliment, maybe?).
Both the above
tunes were rewarded with generous applause but the audience started to get more
vocal with Monk’s tonally ambiguous (my notes said “lots of sharps and flats”
but I’ve been googling!), Ask Me Now. Monk always makes me smile! I couldn’t help hearing chord-sequences
reminiscent of Diamonds Are a Girl’s Best Friend which pre-dates Monk’s
composition by a couple of years – might he really have been influenced by Jule Styne? Next, we had “two for the price of one” – Chick Corea, one pianist, paying
tribute to another – Bud Powell. “Piano Master,” Monk would have
approved, given his own tribute, In Walked Bud. Piano masters live for,
and learn from each other.
The fifth tune was by way of a “bonus track”
and was introduced by Kofi as “unique.” Blood Count was composed by
Billy Strayhorn after he was diagnosed with terminal cancer. This spellbinding
tune, understandably wistful and achingly sad, was new to me. As the last note of the saxophone faded, my
wife summed it up – “Beautiful.”
Fats Waller’s Jitterbug
Waltz – the first jazz waltz ever written, Kofi said, was the perfect
contrast: uplifting and whimsical with some great harmonies. When the audience
was asked: “Has anyone here heard of Ivan Lins?” we were bailed out by the
ever-dependable Tony Eales raising his hand aloft. Well, we have all
heard of him now, after hearing the samba(?), Setembro, brilliantly played by today’s duo. It’s a
lovely tune and I’ll remember the name, Lins, and file it alongside Jobim.
I mentioned before
that Monk, for me, always raises a smile. Sometimes I’m smiling before the tune
even starts – especially when it has the quintessentially Monkish title of: Ba-Lue
Bolivar Ba-Lues-Are! Tony Kofi’s alto rasped and wailed and squeaked (all
in a good way, of course!) while Edis lulled us into a quiet, trilling mid-solo
before ramping up to almost a loud boogie-woogie. What a great tune to finish
this all-too-short set: I was humming it happily all the way down the stairs as
I left the building to face again (contentment undiminished) the slings and
arrows of outrageous Babet!
The penultimate tune: an Edis original, Lunch with Friends was, he explained, “about how nice it was meeting up with friends at lunchtime, having a coffee or a drink and maybe some lunch and listening to jazz – a bit like today.” The Gala has been doing lunchtime “nice” for 10 years now – massive thanks and congrats to everyone who has made it happen over the past decade (and here’s to the next 10)! Jerry
No comments :
Post a Comment